GENRE: In Focus

Mumbai has more than 100 flood-prone areas and around 300 landslide-prone areas vulnerable to the monsoons. According to the Vulnerability Assessment of the Mumbai Climate Action Plan (MCAP), 35.3% of the city’s population are at risk of being exposed to floods, since they are within 250 metres of the hotspots. Monsoon preparedness measures attempt to lower the risk and loss of life in case of heavy rains and potential hazards. “The task of disaster management is to give relief,” says Prabhat Rahangdale, former deputy municipal commissioner (disaster management). “When disaster does strike, it is preemptive preparation that makes the most difference.”  That…

“Homeless people in Chennai do not want to come with me,” says Nandhini, a social worker working for the Hope Charitable Trust in Chennai. “I have been spit on, verbally and physically abused by people going through a mental health episode when I approach them and ask them to come with me to get proper treatment. There are many stories I can tell you where the same people later became my friends when they got help and got better,” says Nandhini.  Nandhini reminisces about the time when a girl named Priya from a well-to-do family in Chennai was rendered temporarily…

Mumbai, being a coastal city, witnesses flooding in vulnerable areas every monsoon. These floods cause much damage to roads, resulting in serious road safety concerns.  According to the Maharashtra Highway Safety Patrol, between January to April, out of the total 19,383 road accidents that occurred in the state 5,333 were fatal and 9,120 people were injured. More than 45% of these were in Mumbai. The transport department attributes this to ongoing metro work and the state of roads - potholes, barricades etc. Ahead of the monsoon season, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is completing pre-monsoon work that will mitigate the…

Tanker water supply, a crucial supplementary source of water for Mumbaikars, could soon become costlier with the implementation of new restrictions on groundwater abstraction. Though the restrictions were introduced way back in September 2020, their implementation was delayed because of clout enjoyed by the water tanker lobby and the city’s heavy dependence on the tanker water supply. Now, tanker owners have to get permission for extracting groundwater for domestic and commercial use. If the rules are not complied with, penalties and police cases follow. How did they go about implementing restrictions? Earlier, in February 2022, officials of the Central Ground…

Beach beautification is almost the first project that any newly elected State Government of Tamil Nadu and for that matter city civic body announces after being sworn into office. Unfortunately, the vision is limited to Marina beach and not much beyond. And what vision there is for the Marina beach is restricted to fountains, re-relaying of the promenade and putting up a granite plaque or two. If all the schemes for Marina beautification had actually been fruitful, we would have a world-class beach in our city. This the Marina beach undoubtedly was till a few decades ago. Now sadly, it…

Depleting groundwater levels across India has been a cause of concern for a long time. To address this, in September 2020, the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) under the union government’s Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation introduced new guidelines for bulk water suppliers - chiefly applicable to tanker water suppliers.   In a public notice issued in newspapers, the ministry explained that the nationwide restrictions were introduced for regulation and control of groundwater development and management and to issue necessary regulatory directions.  How did the restrictions affect Mumbai? This led to chaos in Mumbai as the city depends on…

Most government hospitals and clinics across the country may be a shabby sight. But for the poor, they are the only affordable medical treatment option available. Yet, a majority of the poor prefer to borrow and go to private health centres, as revealed by the findings of the National Family Health Survey-5 recently released by Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya. As per the survey, the number of patients knocking at the doors of public health care facilities has dropped from 55.1% in 2015-16, to 49.9% in 2019-21. Respondents mainly cited “poor quality” of health care to justify their preference for private…

While the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns were hard on everyone, it particularly affected children with special needs. For children with intellectual disabilities and learning difficulties, going to school was integral to maintaining their physical and mental well-being. While Chennai's special schools remained shut, the students suffered setbacks as a result.  Despite months of resumption of physical classes, students still struggle to acclimate to their surroundings. Persistent staffing and funding issues in special schools across Chennai have also added to their woes. Chennai's special schools during lockdown Intellectual disability comprises conditions characterized by significant limitations in both intellectual functioning and adaptive…

Translated by Sandhya Raju நீண்ட வரிசையில் வண்ணமிகு குடங்கள், காத்திருகக்கும் மக்கள் கூட்டம், இவை 2019 கோடை காலத்தில், சென்னையின் பல வீதிகளில் காணப்பட்ட காட்சி. அதன் பிறகு, நல்ல மழை, போதிய நீர் சேகரிப்பு ஆகியவை இருந்தாலும், விளிம்பு நிலையில் வாழும் மக்களின் தண்ணீர் விநியோகம் என்னவோ மாறா காட்சியாகவே உள்ளது.  தண்ணீர் பிரச்சனை எல்லா காலங்களிலும் எங்களுக்கு உள்ளது, கோடை காலத்தில் இன்னும் மோசமாக இருக்கும்” என்கிறார் புளியந்தோப்பில் வசிக்கும் 32 வயது கமலா. அதிகாலை 5 மணிக்கு தன் வேலையை தொடங்கும் இவர் ஐந்து பேருக்கு சமைத்து, மூன்ரு பிள்ளைகளை பள்ளிக்கு கிளப்ப வேண்டும். காலை 9.30 மணிக்கு தண்ணீர் லாரி சத்தம் கேட்டதும் குடத்துடன் சாலைக்கு செல்கிறார்.  “இது தான் எனது தினசரி வேலை, தண்ணீர் லாரி வரும் நேரத்தை பொருத்தே எனது மற்ற வேலைகளை செய்ய வேண்டும். நகரத்தில் பெரும்பாலான பெண்கள் சந்திக்கும்…

One way to be aware of issues of impropriety and poor performance in local government bodies and departments is to track the audit reports from agencies like the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG). This article is the fifth in the Series: Understanding Public Project Audits, by experts from Indian Accounts and Audit Service. Long lines of migrant workers, many of them from the construction sector, on the highways and outside railway stations during the COVID- 19 lockdown are not so distant and unpleasant memories for most of us. This vulnerable section of the population was literally trapped between…